


Doctrina

by Yunica



Series: Pueritia Amicus [3]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Cooking, Developing Friendships, Fishing, Knock Knock, learning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:27:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22061050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yunica/pseuds/Yunica
Summary: It becomes easier to learn more and more about each other.
Relationships: Edelgard von Hresvelg & My Unit | Byleth
Series: Pueritia Amicus [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1586014
Comments: 2
Kudos: 75





	Doctrina

The consideration of each other as friends brings forth another welcome change in their dynamic. They spend the same amount of time together as they had before, but now even more of each moment is dedicated to learning about each other. Byleth had taken to making more of an effort in learning Edelgard’s likes and dislikes, and Edelgard no longer dreads every new day, instead looking forward to spending it with Byleth.

Friend. The word sobers Edelgard and makes her think of Hubert. She wonders how he is doing and if he is alright. They had not exactly had the chance to say goodbye. Thoughts of Hubert turn into thoughts of her siblings, and she imagines that they do not miss her as much as she misses them. At least she has Byleth now to make being forced to stay in the Kingdom more bearable.

Her pondering is interrupted by a specific knock on her door before it can spiral further. The two of them had come up with a special knock after Byleth knocked on her door earlier than normal one morning, and Edelgard had not answered. She had reasoned it was not important because neither a second knock nor the sound of her uncle’s voice had followed after.

Byleth had stood outside the room quietly until Edelgard peered out, wondering why there was no knock on the door at the time there always was. Surprised to find Byleth already standing in the hallway, Edelgard asked why she did not knock. Byleth replied that she did, and did not knock a second time when there was no response because she had assumed Edelgard simply did not want to open the door. Byleth admitted that in hindsight she should have tried to open the door after waiting a sufficient amount of time in case something bad happened. When realization hit Edelgard, she apologized abruptly after Byleth had finished speaking, hurriedly explaining that she thought Byleth was someone else.

Now she opens the door quickly, greeting Byleth on the other side. “Good morning, Byleth.”

Byleth nods, “Good morning, Edelgard.”

* * *

Most of the time they exchange stories. Edelgard tells Byleth all about her siblings, their quirks and personalities. She remembers the younger ones fondly, and the older ones exasperatedly, citing their teasing behavior. She hopes to be able to show Byleth all the places in the capital that she liked someday. “When we get the chance, I would be happy to bring you around Enbarr. My uncle cannot keep us here forever.”

Byleth shares what she can remember from her days on the road with her father and his mercenaries. She talks about campfires stories that she can vaguely recall someone telling. Edelgard always teases her when she never remembers the details properly. What Byleth does remember with clarity is the beer. Jeralt was quite the drinker and so they had often stopped at taverns between jobs. They had been a rowdy bunch, but she admits that she had mostly ignored them. She was too young to partake in their particular festivities anyways.

Edelgard learns that Jeralt—he had asked her to drop the Sir—told many more jokes than just the one Byleth had shared with her, and Byleth has taken it upon herself to share the wealth, so to speak. She often delivers the jokes with her characteristic blank face and monotone voice, and the ridiculousness of that more so than the joke itself never fails to make Edelgard laugh.

There are so many references to fishing that Edelgard thinks Jeralt is obsessed, and she finds out that he may have passed it on to Byleth when she catches her staring at a fishing rod when they are down in the markets. "Do you enjoy fishing?"

Byleth’s head swivels back towards her quickly. “Enjoy? I guess so.” She answers unsurely. It was hard for her to say whether or not she enjoyed something. “My father would take me if there was somewhere to fish near camp. He still keeps our rods in his room.” Even spending time with her father was something she had a difficult time expressing that she liked, but with Edelgard it was beginning to seem different.

"I see. There is a fishing pond quite close to the manor," Edelgard remembered. "We could go now if you would like."

“Okay,” Byleth agrees.

“We can get your fishing rod from the manor before we go,” Edelgard offers.

Byleth’s head tilts, “Why would I need my rod?”

“So that you can use it at the fishing pond. Is that not why we were going?”

Another thing Edelgard had noticed about Byleth was how agreeable she was without really knowing what she was agreeing to. Even if it was somewhere her uncle had warned she could not go, Byleth would still willingly follow along without complaint. At first Edelgard had assumed there was no protest because Byleth was confident in her ability to protect her, but now it seemed that she really was just simply trailing after her without much thought towards where they were going.

Byleth blinks at her, clearly calculating the benefits of having her fishing rod. “But it’s not very useful for protecting you, and If I’m focused on fishing, it’ll be harder to pay attention to our surroundings.” She continues to list more reasons why she thinks it would be a poor idea to go fishing while she was supposed to be protecting Edelgard. “It would be better if I—.”

“Byleth!” Edelgard interrupts her, hands on her hips and face determined. “We are getting your fishing rod and going to the pond.”

“Okay.”

After grabbing Byleth’s fishing rod, which had taken more convincing once they actually got back to the manor, they make it to the pond without incident. Byleth merely stands there as they stop at the edge of the pond, staring at the water.

Edelgard watches her, expecting her to do something, and Byleth turns her head towards Edelgard after a minute of silence, lamely holding her rod and tackle. “I can stand right here the whole time if that makes you feel better. Maybe you can teach me how to fish.”

Setting the rod down and letting it lean against her, Byleth slowly begins to tie the tackle to the line. As she goes through the motions, she explains them to Edelgard, who tries her best to follow along. Although if Edelgard were to be honest, the only part she really understood was when Byleth tossed the line into the water.

Byleth takes the time to carefully release each fish she catches, and after a while she offers Edelgard the rod. She walks Edelgard through all the steps, but neither of them notice the hook getting caught in Byleth’s sleeve as Edelgard pulls her arm back until it is too late. They both end up taking a tumble into the shallow part of the pond when Byleth stumbles into her.

Edelgard apologizes over and over again as they climb out of the pond. “I am so sorry, Byleth!”

“It’s okay. It was an accident.” There is no change in the inflection of her tone, flat as it always is. Byleth easily admits, “I’ve done it to my father before, but he didn’t actually go into the water.”

Edelgard hesitates before asking, “On purpose?”

“Yes. I was testing if it could be used as a weapon,” Byleth eyes the rod lying between them, “but it’s not very effective.”

They head back to the manor after that, receiving a stern lecture from her uncle while one of the maids retrieved towels for them. Despite the scolding they receive, they end up going to the pond many more times, and each time it becomes easier for Edelgard to convince Byleth to bring her fishing gear. Edelgard does not get any better at fishing.

* * *

The cooks were unable to make them anything, too busy as they were with preparing for a dinner Arundel was hosting, so Byleth had gathered the ingredients she needed for something basic her father taught her to make while they were on the road. It was a quick and easy recipe, but Edelgard’s face lit up with a smile when Byleth had placed the plate in front of her.

The sight of it lights something inside Byleth. She becomes intent on learning, practicing, and honing her cooking skills. When they sit out in the gardens, she pours over books of recipes, and then when it comes time for their meals, she commandeers the kitchen from the cooks to try and recreate those recipes. Edelgard always sits at the island in the middle of the kitchen, excitedly waiting to taste whatever Byleth is making.

While Byleth has no preferences, she watches Edelgard’s reactions closely as she eats, trying to gauge which recipes she appears to enjoy more. Edelgard is always more partial to any sweets that Byleth attempts to bake, evident when the treats disappear quickly once they are set on the counter. Apart from the sweets, her favorite dish by far was a vegetable pasta salad that Byleth had thrown together, and when Edelgard tells Byleth this, she makes an effort to prepare it for Edelgard more often than not.

Edelgard seems disappointed whenever the actual cooks make her meals so Byleth takes it upon herself to cook for Edelgard at every opportunity, just to see that smile appear on her face.


End file.
